Chapter 022: It Must Be You!

Suddenly, the noise of a rowdy crowd came from outside.

Ji Xinhe's eyes darkened slightly, and she was about to open the door to go out.

But Ji Dong hurriedly grabbed her: "Let me go instead."

He was reluctant to see his sister in danger.

Ji Xinhe shook her head, though: "I have to go myself; otherwise, I won't feel at ease. Brother, just accompany me."

Ji Dong thought that since Ji Xinhe had regained consciousness, she had become more decisive, and every time he faced her calm demeanor, he also felt much more at ease. He nodded: "Alright."

As Ji Xinhe ran outside, she saw that the once quiet village, already enveloped by night, was now bustling with activity, with most of the lamps lit.

Seeing that Ji Xinhe had come out, Ji Dong hurried over and asked; "Auntie, what's going on? Why is it suddenly so noisy?"

The auntie hurriedly replied, "I heard that Pork San fell into the river, and the villagers just rescued him."

"Is it worth making such a big commotion for such a trivial matter?"

"Oh, you don't know; there's more to it!" The auntie couldn't help but lower her voice.

"What other reason?" Ji Xinhe pretended to be ignorant.

The auntie then mysteriously said, "I heard that someone saw a rendezvous at the Bishui River, and they reported it to Li Zheng, who then went to catch the adulterers. But who would have thought that they saw Pork San struggling in the river."

"Really? Was there no one else there?"

"Nope, but some insist that they saw two people at the time. Now Li Zheng is investigating it, and many people have gathered in his courtyard, as this matter of adultery is a major issue!"

Yang Luo Wan has always been a village with an excellent reputation, and they couldn't tolerate such scandals. Now that they discovered it today, they couldn't just let it go lightly, no wonder it was making such a noise late at night.

"Who insists that they saw it?" Ji Xinhe blinked.

"Wang Er Ya."

Ji Xinhe's eyes turned cold for a moment but returned to normal as she smiled, "Is that so?"

"Ah, it's no use telling you about all this. You might as well go and see for yourself. I'm about to go now!" This auntie was also quite the gossip and quickly set off for Li Zheng's house.

The look on Ji Dong's face was already gloomy, and as he turned to look in the direction of the main house, he noticed that there wasn't the slightest movement from there.

A person like Lady Ding usually loved joining in the excitement. However, she knew better than to keep quiet now.

Ji Xinhe sneered, "Brother, don't bother looking. They've learned their lesson this time and hope to stay out of it. Let's just watch and see who ends up getting burned in the end!"

Ji Dong still couldn't help but worry, "Let's hurry to Li Zheng's house and see what's going on!"

Now that Li Zheng was investigating it, they naturally couldn't just sit back and wait for Wang Er Ya and Pork San to spew nonsense.

Instead, Ji Xinhe said, "Let me change my clothes first."

Ji Dong looked at Ji Xinhe with a puzzled expression, but she had already run back into the house.

When Ji Dong arrived at Li Zheng's house with his younger siblings, a large crowd had already gathered inside, and several burly men were holding torches, illuminating the dark courtyard.

Li Zheng stood at the head of the group, his face solemn, and he asked in a deep voice, "Tell us clearly, what exactly happened?"

He was questioning Wang Er Ya.

Wang Er Ya, after all, was just a young girl. Even though she was prepared, she couldn't help but feel a little nervous when faced with such a big scene. However, she thought of the silver bracelet that Ji Xiulan promised her and clenched her teeth, "I vaguely saw a woman and Pork San standing by the river... flirting with each other. I... I got scared, so I ran back to the village to call for help."

"Who?"

Upon hearing Li Zheng's question, many villagers pricked up their ears to listen carefully. After falling into the river, Pork San had choked on a lot of water, which was especially cold in the autumn night. Apart from choking on water, he was also exposed to the freezing cold; he had passed out when he was rescued and still hadn't regained consciousness. Currently, Li Lang was treating him.

Before Pork San woke up, the villagers had to find out the truth from Wang Er Ya, the "eyewitness."

Ji Dong managed to squeeze his way through the crowd with Ji Xinhe and Xiao Bei to get a better view of the situation.

Wang Er Ya immediately pointed at Ji Xinhe and gathered up her courage: "It was her! It was Ji Xinhe!"

Ji Xinhe's face didn't show any panic. Instead, her eyes were cold and sharp as she stared at Wang Er Ya.

Feeling Ji Xinhe's gaze, Wang Er Ya became a little guilty. She was surprised to see her so calm and composed, and she felt that something was wrong from the moment Pork San fell into the water. But since she couldn't back down now, she had to brace herself and go through with it!

Suddenly, everyone's gaze followed Wang Er Ya's finger and landed on Ji Xinhe. Their eyes were filled with different shades of suspicion, disdain, disgust, and scorn.

Ji Xinhe didn't seem to notice any of it. She rubbed her eyes as if drowsy and said, "What?"

Ji Dong angrily responded, "What nonsense are you talking about? My sister went to bed early tonight and hasn't been out of the house. Just now, when we heard the commotion, she came out to take a look, never expecting that she would be slandered by someone with a hidden agenda. It's outrageous! You've stained my sister's innocence, and I will not hold back!"

Ji Xinhe rubbed her eyes again, appearing drowsy and confused: "I, I, I don't know. I just woke up."

Wang Er Ya's eyes widened in disbelief. What was Ji Xinhe playing at? Wang Er Ya distinctly remembered that just now, Ji Xinhe had been following her to "find her brother." How could she suddenly say that she hadn't left the house at all?

Li Zheng looked at Ji Xinhe's expression, seeming to doubt Wang Er Ya. "Did you see it wrong?"

Ji Xinhe finally said, "Maybe you saw it wrong. It's pitch black out there, especially by the river. How could you see the woman's face from so far away?"

As soon as she said this, the crowd began to question Wang Er Ya, indeed, how could anyone see clearly in such darkness and from such a distance?

Wang Er Ya panicked and responded, "No! I, I, I didn't see the face, but I recognize all the girls in our village since we grew up together. That figure was unmistakably you! This goose-yellow skirt is so conspicuous; it must be you!"

As soon as Wang Er Ya's eyes fell on Ji Xinhe's goose-yellow skirt, she quickly said, as if she had grasped something crucial.